The AI Data Center Race: 3 Stocks Cashing In Today and 1 Aiming to Next Year
AI is driving a gold rush in data centers and power generation, but not every company collecting on that boom is getting paid on the same schedule. Four stocks are riding the wave at very different stages of the race.
Artificial intelligence is driving up demand for two scarce resources simultaneously: data center capacity and the electricity to run them. The Department of Energy projects that data centers will account for up to 12% of U.S. electrical demand by 2028. This update to an earlier look at the AI data center race brings in three new companies that are earning from AI today. One pre-revenue developer stays on the list as the company is still waiting to get paid.
All four companies are riding the same trend, but they will see the money on different schedules. Each one is scored on five measures:
- AI and data center revenue today
- Backlog and booking momentum
- Margins
- Strength of guidance
- Execution and financing risk
That developer comes in fourth because it has no revenue yet. The three companies already earning follow in ranked order.
4. Fermi: Contracts Signed, Revenue Still Years Away
Fermi (NASDAQ:FRMI) has no revenue yet. It is building Project Matador, a power campus in Carson County, Texas. In Q2 FY26, it reported a GAAP net loss of $25.81 million ($0.04 per share), compared with $6.29 million a year earlier. It ended the quarter with $91.7 million in cash. A July convertible note offering brought in $416.8 million in net proceeds.
Its signed contract, a 15-year lease with the AI cloud provider TensorWave, covers 222 MW and about $6.5 billion in contracted revenue. Phased delivery begins in late 2027. On October 13, Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD | AMD Price Prediction) agreed to provide credit support for that lease, meaning it will help back the tenant’s obligations. Fermi called the deal a milestone toward project financing. The lease still has to close by October 31, 2026. Shares trade at $3.16, down 64.2% year to date.
3. Constellation Energy: Nuclear Power Backed by Long Contracts
Constellation Energy (NASDAQ:CEG) represents the power producers. In Q2 FY26, adjusted EPS of $2.55 beat the $2.33 consensus. Revenue of $7.50 billion missed expectations but still grew 23% year over year. Operating income fell 39.01% to $580 million, the weakest margin result of the three companies. Its nuclear plants ran at a 93% capacity factor, which measures actual output against maximum possible output.
Guidance is Constellation’s strongest point. Management raised its FY26 forecast for adjusted operating earnings to $11.50 to $12.50 per share. Constellation signed 920 MW of nuclear power purchase agreements with investment-grade customers. These agreements run 15 to 20 years, with start dates from 2029 to 2032. Because that contracted revenue starts years from now, Constellation ranks third. At $271.37, the stock trades at about 23x the midpoint of its guidance and is down 25.9% year to date.
2. Digital Realty: Record Leasing Drives Cash Flow
Digital Realty Trust (NYSE:DLR) is the data center landlord, structured as a real estate investment trust (REIT). REITs are best judged on funds from operations (FFO), which is net income with property depreciation added back. That gives a clearer view of cash flow. In Q1 FY26, core FFO rose 15% year over year to $2.04 a share, and $1.64 billion revenue beat estimates.
New leases signed in the quarter, known as bookings, set a record at $707 million in annualized base rent. The quarter was driven by a 200 MW AI inference lease, the largest hyperscale deal in the company’s history. About 1.2 GW of capacity is under construction. Management raised FY26 core FFO guidance to $8.00 to $8.10 per share. Financing is a concern: Digital Realty sold 7.3 million new shares for about $1.3 billion, diluting existing holders. Shares trade at about 21x the midpoint of FFO guidance.
1. Vertiv: Power and Cooling Orders Are Turning Into Cash
Vertiv (NYSE:VRT) makes power and cooling equipment for data centers, and it ranks first overall. In Q2 FY26, revenue rose 24.1% to $3.27 billion and adjusted EPS reached $1.52. Adjusted operating margin expanded 410 bps to 22.6%. Free cash flow rose 234% to $925.3 million.
Management raised its FY26 guidance to sales of $13.80 billion to $14.20 billion and adjusted EPS of $6.65 to $6.75. It also pointed to strong backlog coverage: “We expect another year of robust orders growth.” Some revenue slipped into the second half because large projects are being built in multiple phases, and EMEA sales grew just 1.7%. The stock trades at about 31x the midpoint of EPS guidance.
What to Watch in Each Upcoming Report
Scoring all four companies on the same five measures produced a clear ranking order. Vertiv leads on cash flow and margins. Digital Realty leads on bookings. Constellation’s contracts pay out further in the future.
Fermi still has to prove it can deliver. (For readers tracking the wider expansion, we highlighted seven companies providing the power, cooling, and networking behind AI data centers in a free report you can grab here.)
- Vertiv, October 28, 2026, before market: Q3 sales against the $3.65 billion to $3.85 billion guidance, plus how quickly backlog is turning into revenue.
- Digital Realty, October 29, 2026, after market: core FFO per share and booking volume.
- Constellation, November 9, 2026: revenue against estimates and whether management reaffirms guidance.
- Fermi, November 12, 2026, before market: whether the lease closed, progress on project financing, cash on hand, and the target of about 200 MW of initial power within 6 months.
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Trey has been an editor and author at 24/7 Wall St. for more than a decade, where he has published thousands of articles analyzing corporate earnings, dividend stocks, short interest, insider buying, private equity, and market trends. His comprehensive coverage spans the full spectrum of financial markets, from blue-chip stalwarts to emerging growth companies.
Beyond 24/7 Wall St., Trey has created and edited financial content for Benzinga and AOL's BloggingStocks, contributing additional hundreds of articles to the investment community.
Trey's editorial expertise extends across multiple publishing environments. He served as production editor at Dearborn Financial Publishing and development editor at Kaplan, where he helped shape financial education materials. Earlier in his career, he worked as a writer-producer at SVE. His freelance editing portfolio includes work for prestigious clients such as Sage Publications, Rand McNally, the Institute for Supply Management, the American Library Association, Eggplant Literary Productions, and Spiegel.
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